06-05-2011, 12:27 PM
Thank you for responding!
well Im looking through my copy of "Plutarch: On Sparta" from penguin classics. Both quotes about the short sword are from the 4th century B.C.
It was Demades who said conjurors swallow Spartan swords because they are so small. He said this to Agis the younger (338-331)
The quote about fighting close to the enemy was from Antalcidas, he lived in the time of the reign of Agesilaus, so thats early to mid 4th century B.C. He said it in response to someone who asked him why the Spartans used short daggers.
I don't know if the quotes are translated differently in other books. But, both quotes seem to indicate that the short sword was associated with Sparta, so they were either very common among them or standardized and that they maybe other cities didn't use them or used them to a lesser degree.
well Im looking through my copy of "Plutarch: On Sparta" from penguin classics. Both quotes about the short sword are from the 4th century B.C.
It was Demades who said conjurors swallow Spartan swords because they are so small. He said this to Agis the younger (338-331)
The quote about fighting close to the enemy was from Antalcidas, he lived in the time of the reign of Agesilaus, so thats early to mid 4th century B.C. He said it in response to someone who asked him why the Spartans used short daggers.
I don't know if the quotes are translated differently in other books. But, both quotes seem to indicate that the short sword was associated with Sparta, so they were either very common among them or standardized and that they maybe other cities didn't use them or used them to a lesser degree.
